Tag Archives: vegan

Vegetarian eating in the Big Easy is easier than you might believe. In what other city could you find a restaurant with a vegetarian menu perfect for date night and a place where even veggie eaters can satiate their hot dog cravings? From fancy to fast, New Orleans offers some of the freshest vegetarian food on the Mississippi.

Each restaurant on our list has its own feel while remaining true to the heritage and personality of the city they call home. So next time you’re taking it slow in NOLA, check out some of the best vegetarian food the city has to offer. Whether you’re looking for lunch, dinner, or a mid-afternoon pastry, New Orleans is definitely the spot for vegetarians to indulge.

Enjoy our picks for the coolest vegetarian restaurants in New Orleans, Louisiana – and be sure to tell them we sent you!

City Greens

Serving up salads and wraps in a city known for its rich cuisine is daring, and it’s exactly what City Greens is doing. Customers create their own wrap or salad filled with pretty much anything they can think of. We’re especially fans of the Raw Shaved Salad with beets, Brussels Sprouts, and fennel. City Greens also posts where each of their ingredients comes from, so there are no surprises about what’s in your meal, proudly alternating the menu by seasonal availability.

For many years, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has used advertising to show us that all vegan women are slim and traditionally sexy. That’s the whole point of the “I’d Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur” campaign. PETA also puts out an annual list of the year’s “sexiest vegan celebrities.” This year, that list includes Kristen Bell. People’s Sexiest Man of 2013, Adam Levine, considers himself 85 percent vegan. This time however, PETA may have taken the sexy and slim bit a little too far.

When news broke that Plan B, a morning-after pill, may not be effective for women weighing more than 176 pounds, PETA jumped at the chance to convert more people to veganism. In a press release they suggested “Plan V as a Plan B lifeline for overweight women.”

For the first time, plant-based eaters have a food pyramid that suits their dietary needs. A new vegetarian and vegan diet pyramid was released by Oldways in response to the growing popularity of meatless diets. The pyramid is an updated version of the one created in 1997 and places more emphasis on fruits and vegetables than the original.

Foods are broken down into categories, much like withthe traditional food pyramid. Whole grains have the most recommended servings, with 5-8 per day, followed by vegetables (4-6 servings), and fruits (3-4 servings). Beans, peas, lentils and soy make up another level of the pyramid, then nuts, peanuts, seeds and peanut/nut butters. Finally on the top levels are herbs, spices and plant oils, and eggs and/or dairy.

“It’s beautifully illustrated, and one of the most astonishing things to me is if you put your fingers over the top, it’s vegan,” said Oldways president Sara Baer-Sinnott in an interview with the Huffington Post. “In the past, we didn’t really account for vegans. Personally, I love cheese. But here, there’s not much difference between vegan and vegetarian.” (more…)

In an all encompassing interview about his life, airing this Sunday on OWN, with media mogul Oprah Winfrey, the Reverend Al Sharpton discussed his substantial weight loss. The civil rights leader, who’s always been a fierce orator, decided to become just as passionate about his health as he was with his beliefs. After a max weight of 305 pounds left him feeling like a “prisoner in my own body,” Sharpton has since lost nearly 170 pounds.

The 135-pound Sharpton once coupled his larger than life sermons with an equally boisterous body. While his physique can now be best described as shockingly petite, he’s still a spitfire in the pulpit. His come-to-the-scale moment happened when he realized the contradictions involved in preaching self-control while he overate and lived a lethargic lifestyle. He told Oprah, “We can’t preach community control when we aren’t practicing self-control.”

So, how did the good reverend do it? Simple portion control and exercise. He swapped platefuls of fried chicken for whole grains and salads and exercises on a cardio bicycleeveryday. “You live seven days a week, that means you should exercise seven days a week,” he told Oprah. (more…)

My favorite place is over the Kitchen Aid, covered in flour/powdered sugar/batter in yoga pants or a favorite pair of too fancy shoes while trying to keep the kitchen from looking like a bakery exploded. ~Abby The Frosted Vegan

In the past, if you’ve avoided vegan websites because you thought they were all about 101 ways to cook tofu, think again. Abby has been in the kitchen helping her Dad and Grandma since she was old enough to reach the countertop. Her blog is loaded with delicious recipes, vibrant photos and stories about the inspiration behind each dish.

Recently we asked Abby to tell us a bit more about The Frosted Vegan.

Why did you start your food blog? I have always wanted to start a food blog, but I finally decided to take the plunge last year after I moved away from my hometown and I wanted to share dessert recipes with my dad. I honestly wish I’d started sooner, but already so thankful for the community I’ve become a part of, food bloggers are pretty awesome people.

How would you describe your approach to eating/health? I eat a primarily vegan/plant-based diet, occasionally eating cheese or dairy in baked goods, but I try to stick to whole foods as much as possible. I believe in indulging in moderation and that nothing should be “off limits”, if you want it, have it! I connect more with how I feel after I eat something, if I feel bad after, I probably won’t eat much of it again.

Last week, Robin Quivers returned to the Howard Stern show after literally phoning it in for the last 17 months while she battled a rare form of uterine cancer. The 61-year-old co-host, news anchor and cohort of the self-proclaimed King of All Media credits her post 9/11 diet for helping her through months of chemotherapy. She recently released a book that details the healthy lifestyle she adopted and how she believes it saved her life, “The Vegucation of Robin: How Real Food Saved My Life.”

When she received her cancer diagnosis, it’s no surprise the first person Robin called was Howard Stern, afterall, she has worked alongside him for more than 20 years. What might surprise some is the way the often polarizing shock-jock reacted, “Howard told me that he was going to get me the best help, the most up-to-date treatment and anything else I needed,” Quivers recently told the Daily News. “I don’t think I would be here at all if it weren’t for Howard.”

Summer is over but my salad bowl is still full! I’m a big fan of the big a– salad trend. Just a plate piled high with greens, veggies, berries, nuts and frankly anything else you want – it’s an entree that never disappoints. I always finish feeling full, satisfied, and not weighed down.

With Autumn as my muse, and my refrigerator quickly filling with the early seasonal produce, I crafted an entirely new entree salad. And it’s gooooood.

“How is this even real?” was our photographer’s reaction upon tasting hers. And then she proceeded to demolish the rest of the food props.

Our Harvest Chopped Salad is like a farmers market truck unloaded in your kitchen. And then it rained down this homemade vinaigrette and what bloomed was just the best darn thing you’ve eaten in a while!

With red beets, carrots, quinoa, and ginger, this salad is not only hearty and satiating, but it’s also a great way to get your food experimentation on. If it’s been a while since you’ve tried some of these ingredients, or presents the first time, get after it! All of the complementary flavors blend perfectly together and it’s so darn pretty you won’t have any choice but to want to eat it. (more…)

Committing 100 percent to a new diet plan can be difficult, especially when the diet excludes or removes certain foods you are used to eating. Authors Dr. Jamie Noll and Caitlin Herndon recognize the challenge that full commitment can present, and have offered a solution. Their new book, The 95% Vegan Diet and its accompanying workbook, is designed to help readers follow a realistic vegan diet plan, mostly.

The co-authors believe that a major factor that prevents diet success is guilt. You may be following your diet plan just fine, but then give in to a craving. According to Dr. Noll and Herndon, that’s nothing to feel guilty over. “The number one reason I see people fail at weight loss/attempt to become healthier is what I call the ‘guilt factor’,” Dr. Noll said. “I’ve seen it time and time again in my practice. For example: I’m going to go on the Atkins diet because I don’t care about bread anyway. The problem is they are dying for that pasta – so they have some – but then they don’t forgive themselves.”

Dr. Noll added that the reason it is the 95% Vegan Diet, and not 100%, is to allow people some wiggle room and give them permission to forgive themselves for not sticking to the diet. “I want to show people that they don’t have to be perfect. They can forgive themselves and still have excellence in good health. Five percent is the margin in good science before we consider something statistically different.” (more…)

The great thing about having your own backyard garden is access to fresh, organic fruit, vegetables, and herbs any time you want. It’s one of the most cost-effective ways to supply your groceries. The downside is having way too much of a good thing. One “harvest” in my garden last weekend yielded six cantaloupes; there are only three people in my household. That’s a lot of melon!

It’s a shame to let all of that excess produce go to waste. And as the summer draws to a close and all of those plants reach their peak of production, you’re going to have a lot of fruits and vegetables on your hands.

My primary policy is to share the wealth! I keep what we can reasonably eat and then start sharing the rest with friends and neighbors. No one has ever passed! My secondary policy – get in the kitchen! When pinched for creativity or inspiration at meal time, use what you have available as your muse. We’ll give you a little help to get started.

Tabbouleh-Inspired Freekeh Salad – Any extra cucumbers and tomatoes will go to good use in this simple vegan salad. You can also use some of the basil and chives you’re growing.

The first thing you notice when you visit Como Come Cami is the text. Unless you’re lucky enough to be bilingual you might not understand at first but don’t panic, just scroll. Scroll down the page and you’ll find the Spanish text has been translated to English so you won’t miss a thing. Born in Argentina, Como Come Cami founder, Camila Jurado started traveling when she was 10 years old. She’s lived in Honduras and Buenos Aries but she graduated from a college in Savannah, Georgia. I’d love to know if her Spanish accent took on a southern twang.

Camila created her vegetarian-inspired blog to connect with other vegans and share the creative recipes she’s gathered from her travels. More about Camila and Como Come Cami:

Why did you start your food blog? I always liked cooking but became more passionate about healthy foods and ingredients once I became a vegetarian. I started this site with the idea of sharing healthy recipes and travel with a vegetarian approach. I love traveling, discovering new ingredients, buying vintage plates, reading cookbooks and taking photos.

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